genocide
Americannoun
noun
Other Word Forms
- genocidal adjective
Etymology
Origin of genocide
First recorded in 1940–45; from Greek géno(s) “race” + -cide
Compare meaning
How does genocide compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:
Explanation
Genocide refers to the systematic destruction of a race or cultural group. In the Rwandan genocide of 1994, members of one ethnic group, the Hutus, killed some 850,000 Tutsis in an attempt to wipe them out completely. Genocide was coined in 1944 by a Polish-Jewish scholar named Raphael Lemkin in response to the Holocaust. In 1948, the United Nations defined genocide as any of several acts (including murder) "committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group..."
Vocabulary lists containing genocide
Frankenwords: Words with Roots from Different Languages
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Human Geography - High School
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President Trump's Second State of the Union Address (2019)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There’s no attempt to describe the victims of genocide as responsible for their own fate.
From The Wall Street Journal • Mar. 5, 2026
The mineral-rich east of DR Congo has been dogged by conflict for more than 30 years, since the 1994 Rwandan genocide.
From BBC • Mar. 3, 2026
On Tuesday, JD Vance’s official X account posted a message acknowledging the Armenian genocide during his visit to Armenia.
From Salon • Feb. 11, 2026
Ukrainians have termed their own word for the barrage -- "Kholodomor", a reference to the Holodomor, the 1930s famine orchestrated by Soviet leader Joseph Stalin that Kyiv considers a genocide.
From Barron's • Feb. 10, 2026
A formal style that is appropriate for the inscription on a genocide memorial will differ from a casual style that is appropriate for an email to a close friend.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
